Gary Kemp has been honoured with a Million-Air Award for Spandau Ballet’s mega-hit True, which as been played over five million times in the United States.
The guitarist, who penned the iconic track, appeared virtually to accept the prize at the 2020 BMI London Awards on Monday, admitting, “Nothing is quite like a DJ putting your record on, on a radio…”
“I wrote True with Spandau Ballet, my band, when I was 22 years old. I never thought I’d be standing here, nearly 40 years later, taking the award for five million airplays in America,” commented Gary.
“We’re living in a time when you see a billion YouTube views but nothing is quite like a DJ putting your record on, on a radio. And the fact that it’s still being appreciated in America is very moving for me.
“I wanna say thank you to everyone at BMI for this [award],” he added.
The award comes at a time of inactivity from the band, which is without a singer since the departure of Tony Hadley, who fronted Spandau Ballet from 1979 to 2017. His replacement, Ross William Wild, lasted from 2018 to 2019.
Despite Gary previously admitting he’d love to regroup with Tony, the singer has insisted he’ll never go back to the band.
